Apr 30, 2014
This insect, which seems a mixture of dragonflies and butterflies, is Nemoptera bipennis (Neuroptera - Nemopteridae).
The Neuroptera are characterized by having a pair of membranous forewings heavily veined, typically colored with green and straw white; and vestigial hindwings (no ability to fly) reduced to a narrow band with three longitudinal ribs which expand at the end forming a corkscrew [1].
Nemoptera bipennis is commonly named the Wood Fairy or Thread-winged-Lacewing, known as Duende in Spanish which translates as an elf or a fairy.
This species is endemic to the Iberian Peninsula and not very common; only two other species of the genus can be found in southeastern Europe [2].
Photo credit: ©Gigi Sebastian Rusel